The Penguins invited a few undrafted, unsigned free agents to their prospect development camp this past summer.
The most intriguing were a pair of prospects from Western Michigan University -- current junior defenseman Aidan Fulp and current sophomore center Max Sasson.
Fulp is a big, 6-foot-3, 210-pound right-handed defensive defenseman who plays with an edge and some physicality. Sasson, who is listed at 6-foot-1 and 181 pounds, named his 200-foot game as one of his big strengths of his game, as well as his transition game and his sound positioning. I wrote about both of them at that camp in this story if you want to learn more about either player.
Fulp and Sasson, both 22 years old, didn't sign contacts with the Penguins over the offseason and returned to Western Michigan this season. That's not too unusual, and it doesn't mean that there isn't a chance they could get a deal in the future, either. There have been several instances over the years in which the Penguins brought a prospect to a development camp then signed him the following season, after his junior or senior year.
How have Fulp and Sasson fared so far this season? Let's take a look.
Fulp has been playing on his natural right side this season after primarily playing on his off left side last year. He's been paired with Panthers prospect Carter Berger for the entire season, and the two have either been listed as the first or second pair all year.
Scoring isn't Fulp's main job -- he's more of a defensive defenseman -- but he's still capable of chipping in offensively occasionally. His two goals this season through 21 games matches his career-high from last season in 13 fewer games, and his seven assists are four shy of his career-high of 11, a total he recorded in both of his first two collegiate seasons.
Fulp leads Western Michigan in blocked shots with 28, having blocked seven more shot attempts than the next-best Bronco.
Fulp was just named the NCHC Defenseman of the Week for the period from Dec. 12-Jan. 1.
Sasson has been elevated to first-line center this season. He started out centering the fourth-line in his freshman year last year before moving up to the second line as part of his second-half season turnaround.
Sasson's picked up the pace too as far as his scoring goes. His total of eight goals this season in 22 games is one shy of his total from freshman year in 15 fewer games. Half of those eight goals have come on the power play, and three of his goals have been game-winners. At 20 assists, he's already eclipsed last season's total of 13. Sasson's 28 points tie him for fourth in the entire country in scoring in college hockey.
Sasson is averaging a 49% success rate in the faceoff circle as well.
The Penguins' prospect pool is obviously a shallow one. They made an effort to bolster the pool this past season with the signings of six free-agent prospects, and it's fair to assume that they'll be active on that market again this year. It might be worth following Sasson and Fulp this season, given that the Penguins have already shown interest in both players this past season.
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Here's how the Penguins' other prospects in junior, college, and Europe did over the last two weeks:
FORWARDS
Tristan Broz
Position: Center/wing
Size: 6-0/178
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, second round
Age: 20
Team: Denver (NCAA)
Season totals: 20 games, 5 goals, 8 assists
Denver was on holiday break this week.
Judd Caulfield
Position: Right wing
Size: 6-4/212
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, fifth round
Age: 21
Team: North Dakota (NCAA)
Season totals: 19 games, 7 goals, 2 assists
North Dakota was on holiday break this week.
Luke Devlin
Position: Center
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL)
Season totals: 27 games, 4 goals, 14 assists
Devlin played in one game over the last two weeks (due to the holiday schedule, he didn't miss any games) and was scoreless. He was shifted from center to wing for his most recent game.
Zam Plante
Position: Center
Size: 5-9/161
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, fifth round
Age: 18
Team: Chicago Steel (USHL)
Season totals: 15 games, 3 goals, 8 assists
Plante played in three games in the last two weeks and was scoreless as he centered Chicago's third line.
Kirill Tankov
Position: Center
Size: 6-1/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 20
Team: SKA-Neva (VHL)
Season totals: 1 game
Tankov suffered a season-ending neck injury in the opening game of the season and required surgery to repair a fractured vertebrae. He is expected to be able to play next season and is no longer wearing a neck brace.
Chase Yoder
Position: Center
Size: 5-10/176
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2020, sixth round
Age: 20
Team: Providence (NCAA)
Season totals: 20 games, 5 goals, 6 assists
Providence returned from holiday break this week to play in the Ledyard Classic, an annual pre-New Years tournament held at Dartmouth. Providence won both games it played in to win the tournament and Yoder was scoreless in both, centering Providence's third line.
DEFENSEMEN
Santeri Airola
Size: 5-11, 163
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2019, seventh round
Age: 22
Team: Ilves (Liiga), KOOVEE (Mestis)
Season totals: 5 games (Liiga), 20 games, 5 goals, 6 assists (Mestis)
Airola played two games in the second Finnish league over the last two weeks and scored three goals and an assist.
Isaac Belliveau
Size: 6-2/185
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, fifth round
Age: 19
Team: Gatineau Olympiques (QMJHL)
Season totals: 24 games, 5 goals, 20 assists
Belliveau scored a goal and an assist in his three games over the last two weeks on the left side of Gatineau's top defense pairing:
Nolan Collins
Size: 6-3/194
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2022, sixth round
Age: 18
Team: Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
Season totals: 24 games, 3 goals, 6 assists
Collins recorded was scoreless in three games in the last two weeks. He's been moved up to Sudbury's top defense pairing, on his natural right side.
Daniel Laatsch
Size: 6-5/183
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 20
Team: Wisconsin (NCAA)
Season totals: 20 games, 3 assists
Wisconsin returned from holiday break for the KwikTrip Holiday Face-Off tournament this week and Laatsch was scoreless in both games. Wisconsin lost to Clarkson in the Final.
Ryan McCleary
Size: 6-2/180
Shoots: Right
Drafted: 2021, seventh round
Age: 19
Team: Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
Season totals: 31 games, 7 goals, 10 assists
McCleary had a goal and two assists in three games over the last two weeks. His goal was his first career shorthanded goal:
Owen Pickering
Size: 6-4/180
Shoots: Left
Drafted: 2022, first round
Age: 18
Team: Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
Season totals: 27 games, 5 goals, 17 assists
Pickering played in two games in the last two weeks and had three assists. All three assists came in the same game, including one on an overtime-winner.
GOALTENDERS
Joel Blomqvist
Size: 6-2/183
Catches: Left
Drafted: 2020, second round
Age: 20
Team: Karpat (Liiga)
Season totals: 21 games, 2.29 GAA, .907 SV%
Blomqvist has been injured since Dec. 16 after an in-game collision that included contact to the head. His team hasn't disclosed what the injury is, but if it is a concussion, it's his second one of the season after he previously had one in October from another collision in a game.
Sergei Murashov
Size: 6-0/167
Catches: Right
Drafted: 2022, fourth round
Age: 18
Team: Loko Yaroslavl (MHL), Lokomotiv (KHL)
Season totals: 30 games, 1.26 GAA, .957 SV%, 10 shutouts (MHL), 1 game, 1.00 GAA, .947 SV% (KHL)
Murashov played in four games in the Russian junior league in the last two weeks, posting a 3-0-1 record with two of the wins being shutouts -- one with 14 saves, the other with 29. He allowed just one goal in each of the two other games he played.
Murashov has conceded multiple goals in a game in just eight of his 30 appearances this season. He's allowed more than two goals just five times.
In the System, by Taylor Haase, appears Tuesdays on DK Pittsburgh Sports. Find previous editions.
